School Picture Day

by Lynn Plourde, Thor Wickstrom (Illustrator)

It's school picture day, and everyone is dressed up and ready to smile for the camera. Everyone, that is, except Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena the First. She's too busy trying to figure out how things work to care about pictures. After her tinkering gets everyone covered in grease, soot, and ashes, it looks as though the class picture is going to be a disaster. Then a twist of fate allows Josephina to put her talents to good use. With an endearing heroine, lively text, and irresistibly funny illustrations, this is sure to have readers grinning from ear to ear.

Genres: Picture Books, School, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Childrens

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

I write kids' books--talk about a FUN job! I worked for 21 years as a speech-language therapist in Maine schools. When I got married, I got 3 & 4-year-old stepsons as part of my ready-made family. I read the boys picture books at bedtime. They fell asleep after 2 or 3 books, but I kept reading stacks and stacks of picture books and started to dream . . . maybe I could write picture books. I was already writing educational books (listening & speaking ideas for the classroom), but PICTURE BOOKS--that was different!

Different, and sloooooow! I had 13 years of rejections before getting my first book published, Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud, and I still get more rejections than acceptances--even after having more than 40 books published. So I'm still an author-in-training--learning to be a better author all the time.

I LOVE writing, the whole creative process. I also LOVE sharing my books with kids at schools: doing interactive readings, turning one of my books into a play, and teaching students how to plan and write different kinds of stories (i.e. problem stories, character stories, graphic novel scenes, fables) modeled after my books.

I love to try new kinds of writing such as poetic stories, a biography, a graphic novel, and more. Writing new kinds of stories is a challenge, but it makes writing fun and keeps me interested in the process.

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lynn comes up with wonderful ideas. This is about picture day and Josephina is in the class. Josephina is a character. She has to know how things work. She carries a toolbox with her. She doesn’t even remember it’s picture day. She is too busy wondering how things work. On the way to school she takes the gear shifts apart on the bus so that it erupts oil and fumes all over the children and they have to walk to school. During the pictures, she has to figure out how the sprinkler’s work and the heating grate. The photographer can’t get a good picture and the children get dirtier and dirtier as they go along.

She also has snapshots of all these children with missing teeth and wide smiles. They are so great. This story is amazing.

The nephew had a great laugh with this book. He loved the school children pictures and he laughed at the hijinks of Josephina. She kept getting everyone dirty and he thought that was funny. He said this was pretty good for a book about school. He gave it 3 stars.

[Alison Strandell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the message that all people are talented in their own way. :)

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story: 3 stars
Illustrations: 3 stars

Not as good as some of the other picture books in this series featuring Mrs. Shepherd's class. In this book, a photographer arrives to take the class picture, but the children are the worse for wear due to one child's curiosity. Funny, but the photographer is portrayed as a dunce. He doesn't know how his own camera works. "All I do is push the button." And he talks to the children as if they are newborn babies. "Birdie wants a cheesy cheesy."

[Tam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a repetitive book with quite a few words for a young child. It follows a pattern. Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena the First carries a toolbox and is very curious about how things work. When she sees something she wants to know more about, the picture shows her looking at the item and then saying, "Hmmm. I wonder how this (object) works." It also always says, "After some highfalutin fidgeting, fiddling, fuddling, and foopling, Josephina finally figured out how the (object) worked."

My boys (ages 4 & 8) liked certain things in this book. They liked how Josephina would see something and want to know how it worked (the gear shift on the bus, the electric pencil sharpener in the classroom, the sprinkler system in the school, the heat vent on the floor, a walking and talking bird used by the photographer, and finally the photographer's camera).

My boys also liked that every time she took one of the things apart, something bad would happen (grease flew everywhere and the bus broke down when she tore apart the gear shift, flying wood shavings from the pencil sharpener, water from the sprinkler system, soot from the heat vent,and feathers from the walking bird).

In the end, the camera is broken but Josephina is able to fix it.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: This was a fun read but not very captivating in my opinion. Its about picture day at school and one little girl is more interested in learning how things work rather than looking pretty for the school picture. Each step of the way through the book the girl finds something new to tinker with and learn about. Each time she ends up covering the rest of the students with something whether its water, soot or feathers. In the end the camera doesn't work and its the little girl that fixes it to everyones surprise and delight.

Evaluation: This would be a great book to use to discuss student ability and how everyone is different and has their own strengths. I would use this book as an interactive read aloud with students because of the way that it is written and the language it uses. Students would enjoy the repetitive nature of the text.

Grade Level: K-2

Publication Year: Reprint 2004

Discussion Questions:
- Is it ok to mess with things that do not belong to you?
- Have you ever taken a school picture? What do you usually look like on picture day?
- How would you describe Josephina?
- What do you think Josephina will do next?

[Kandice Buck · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is school picture day and everyone is prepared and dressed nice except for Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena! She loves to fiddle with things in order to figure out how they operate. SHe fiddles all day leaving everyone all messy and dirty for their pictures. When it is time to take the class picture Josephina keeps fiddling and making more messes. She is ruining their picture day until the photographer can't get his camera to work. Then Joesphina fiddles with the camera and fixes it. The picture is finally taken and the day was saved by Joesphina. This is a great book to read on picture day to the children. This is also a great day to represent how chaotic picture day actually is for the students and the teachers.

[Emily Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED THIS BOOK! It is one of the most realistic picture children book I have ever read. Knowing students who struggle with not being able to pay attention from either ADHD or autism this portrays it so well how easily distracted they are. The young girl in this story is easily distracted by how things work and throughout picture day she causes everything to get messed up a million times during each picture and the outcome is always a mess and makes the other children dirty. At the end of this story the little girl ended up saving the day because of her curiosity with how things work and I think it was important to know that even though students may have some problem with not being able to stay still they are smart enough and capable of doing great things.

[Katherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cute book... but did not like the "baby talk" in the book... This book can be read to 5-7 year olds - kindergarten and first graders since the book takes place in school and is about picture day. Teachers could read this aloud on actual picture days, but some of the dialogue i felt was very baby-ish and I wouldn't read this to my class. Here are some examples of what the photographer said: "Time to line up, you cutesie wootsies"... "Teethy weethies. Let's see those teethies." (To get them to smile)... and the part when the camera breaks and photographer was asked if it could be fixed... he said "no-sy wo-sy".

[Kim Pietrobono · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awards: N/A

Grades: 1st-2nd grade

Summary: This book is about Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena who loves to tinker. On school picture day, her tinkering gets her into trouble when everyone’s nice clothes get covered in filth. Before picture day is ruined, Josephina finds a way to save the day.

Review: This book was very entertaining. The hilarious heroine, illustrations, and plot are sure to make a class of young children laugh uncontrollably. I imagine after reading her silly name out loud that the kids will be hooked!

In class use: This book can be used as an entertaining read aloud. It can also be used as a leveled-independent reading book in the classroom.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the collection of “School Day” books by Lynn Plourde that features Mrs. Shepherd and her students. In this edition Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena is a curious inventor of a child whose passion for knowing how things work often causes trouble. On picture day her curiosity ends in chaos several times over (completely unnoticed by Josephina). Thankfully her knowledge of how things works saves the day and Mrs. Shepherd’s class is rewarded with the most interesting school picture in the yearbook.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lynn Plourde does it again! Another terrific picture book. This book is about Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena who likes to tinker and discover how things to work. Throughout this rollicking funny book she causes discomfort and mayhem as she explores things on School Picture Day. In the end, the photographer needs someone to repair his camera. Guess who comes to the rescue?! A fun read aloud and a book that shows that girls can be scientific, too.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the illustrations more than the story, I must confess. I don't understand why the teacher didn't try to clean up the kids after each of Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena's mishaps, or, for that matter, take away her toolbox! I guess the message here is that some things that may seem disadvantageous can have their useful sides, or can be useful at the right moment. Not a bad story, but it could have been better.

[Kristine Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute illustrations tell the story of Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena and the tool box she likes to use to figure out how everything works. A lot of repetition will keep kids interested in the story. As an adult, I found it a little frustrating that she kept causing so much mess for her classmates.

[Kristine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute illustrations tell the story of Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena and the tool box she likes to use to figure out how everything works. A lot of repetition will keep kids interested in the story. As an adult, I found it a little frustrating that she kept causing so much mess for her classmates.

[Olivia Rowley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very cute book to read to a class on school picture day. It is about an adventurous little girl who cannot seem to sit still. She takes everything she can find apart just to see how it works and then puts it back together. It was a good book that will make the children laugh and keep their interest.

[Breana Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a student who does not get that picture day was about being dressed nice and sitting still to not mess up the picture. She liked to take thing apart, and ended up fixing the camera. The wording of some of the text seemed like it was for the younger grades. Reading this book would be a fun quick read on picture day for the students to know what picture day is about.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love a good picture book that I can read to my students on special days. School Picture Day by Lynn Plourde is a silly, rhyming, engaging book about a student who is more interested in how things work than what she needs to be doing. I don't align it with other lessons or activities, but instead I just use it as fu read aloud on school picture day. My students always get a good laugh from it!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gently humorous picture book about Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena, an extremely curious little girl who can fix anything. Detailed artwork makes Mrs. Shepherd's classroom the place to be. This pairs well with Barney Salzberg's Crazy Hair Day.

[Life Between Coffee Spoons · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute illustrations tell the story of Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena and the tool box she likes to use to figure out how everything works. A lot of repetition will keep kids interested in the story. As an adult, I found it a little frustrating that she kept causing so much mess for her classmates.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very funny story about picture day. I liked that an African American girl was the protagonist, and although she gets into a lot of trouble, it is because she is basically an engineer and we see how her skills are useful, too. Good diversity of the students.

[Joseph Pomatto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Josephina was always so curious and wanted to know everything worked well she would always fiddle with things and on this day it was picture day and she was messing things all up but ends up saving the day

[Kaitlyn Lawrence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that this book is aimed more towards the lower grades of students because of the text used. It would be a good read on picture day to help students understand what is going on and how it is going to mess up their daily routine.

[Melissa Housholder · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay for me. I was not incredibly thrilled. The illustrations are good, but the story is lacking something.

[Emma Longenecker · Rating 5 out of 5]

School Picture Day is a story about an elementary school class that is having their class picture taken. However, one of the girls, Josephina Caroleena Wattasheena the First, causes problems starting with the bus ride to school. She is very curious about how different things work like the lever on the bus, the electric pencil sharpener at school, the sprinkler system, the heating system, and the wind up bird being used as a prop. Each time she has an interest in a new system, she takes it apart to figure out how it works and causes the rest of the class to get messy and ruin their picture day outfits. At the end of the book, the picture man doesn’t know how to fix his camera, and Josephina comes to the rescue with her fidgeting. The entire class and the picture man finally take a picture.

One of the major themes in this book is curiosity. Josephina is very curious, and has an interest in taking things apart to learn how they work.

This children’s book was very unexpecting to me, but I think it was a good read. I thought that it would only be about an elementary class taking their school pictures, but I was surprised by all of the messes Josephina gets her class into. At first she causes problems for the whole class by getting their best outfits messy, but in the end her curiosity helps the class when the photographers camera is broken and she is able to fix it. I would also say that this book goes against the gender roles that most children’s books follow. I think that most readers would expect the “trouble maker” in the class to be a boy, and instead its Josephina. She also has a more masculine interest in mechanic type systems.

I would recommend this book for kids in their earlier years of elementary school. I think that it can teach young kids different lessons about girls having other interests besides dolls and dancing. This is a fun book that incorporates a more unique language, for example, “after some highfalutin fidgeting, fiddling, fuddling, and foopling” Josephina is able to figure out how a new system works. Along with the language, the illustrations will keep the readers interested in the story.

[Amalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awards: n/a

Appropriate grade level(s): k-3rd

Summary: This book is about a girl named Josephina and her love for tinkering. On her classes picture day, she gets so caught up playing with the camera that she gets her whole class dirty and messy in grease and ashes. However, using her creativity, Josephina is able to find a solution and helps her class take a great class picture.

Review: I think this is such a cute book for young readers. It has a comical aspect to it that I think young readers will enjoy. It shows that even if you make a mistake, a solution is always possible- what's important is that you follow your passion.

In-class uses:
-Preparation for picture day
-Problem and solution

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a deeply silly, funny book that I expect a lot of kids would love. The language is kind of grating and repetitive, but that’s also part of the silliness. I like that the protagonist is a Black girl who tinkers and follows her interests and fixes things (and I like that no one really tells her off for it, even when she’s disrupted the class plan).

[Jocelyn Boop]

Why I chose this book:
I chose this book because it’s a fun story about picture day at school.

What I liked about the book:
I liked the book because the students would find the story and illustrations very funny.

How I would use this book in a future classroom:
I would use this book to get the students ready for picture day.

[Sydney Huntington-Strohm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this book because of the art and rhymes in the book. I would recommend this book to kindergarteners because I could teach them about the sounds of letters. The message in the book is when things go wrong still work to make due with what is happening around you and the materials that you have.

[Alyssa Doughty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a super fun read. I absolutely loved the word play and story behind it. I would definitely read this book to my future students on the day of picture day to start them off with something fun.

[Wally Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lynn Plourde's books are always fun,